The Supreme Court on Tuesday approved the Election Commission’s plan to publish West Bengal’s final electoral roll on February 28 despite the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise being incomplete. The bench, led by Chief Justice Surya Kant, highlighted the scale of the revision, noting nearly 80 lakh claims and objections related to unmatched votes and logical discrepancies.
To expedite the process, the court allowed the Calcutta High Court to deploy civil judges with over three years’ experience and requisition serving or retired judicial officers from neighbouring states like Jharkhand and Odisha. The Election Commission will cover travel and accommodation costs for officers brought in from other states.
The order also clarified that names added through supplementary rolls after February 28 would be legally considered part of the final list. Accepted documents for verification include Aadhaar cards and Class 10 admit or passing certificates, even if not digitised due to portal crashes or heavy volume.
The directive aims to ensure the voter roll revision proceeds efficiently without affecting the electoral calendar, enhancing judicial capacity to address the backlog of claims and objections in West Bengal.
